Real estate association wants $4B credit quota hike

The 1% increase of over VND100 trillion ($4.1 billion) should be implemented in December and January, according to the association.

HoREA chairman Le Hoang Chau told VnExpress that the quota increase would be necessary to help pump capital into the real estate market and other key sectors.

With Tet -- the lunar new year festival and Vietnam’s largest holiday -- approaching at the end of January, an urgent decision is needed to help bolster sales, he added.

Chau said that property developers, homebuyers and investors are in trouble because they don’t have enough access to credit.

Many companies do not have enough cash to maintain operations and without timely action the market could plumet into crisis, he said.

He warned that the consequences of such a crisis could lead to a full-blown economic recession.

The capital booster will help homebuyers purchase property at reasonable interest rates, he added.